Politics and power in the babycare business – Structural aspects of childcare provision: Eine Einführung in das Paradigma - An introduction to the paradigm

Who cares for babies is an emotive topic that has challenged philanthropists, parents, policymakers, practitioners and researchers for decades. But as veryyoung children’s care outside the family home becomes increasingly commodified and marketised in many countries of the world, moral arguments are oftensupplanted by others grounded in micro and macro-economic reasoning, using scientific evidence as justification. Attention then turns to a neoliberal preoccupation with affordability, accessibility and the structural dimensions of quality in provision for parents. Babies and their carers are positioned as service users and providers and the latter feel themselves to be subject to the impact of market forces and those for whom these provide the authority to dictate its conditions: politicians, regulators, employers and consumers (parents). This chapter considers how perceptions of power can influence the nature of relationships between babies and their carers. It is based on research carried out in private and state-maintained day nurseries in southeast England since 2008.